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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28192233">Magnetrix</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASingleRaindrop/pseuds/ASingleRaindrop'>ASingleRaindrop</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Miraculous Ladybug</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Original Akuma, Prom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 22:20:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,887</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28192233</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ASingleRaindrop/pseuds/ASingleRaindrop</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Francoise Dupont is holding a prom, and for once things seem to be going smoothly. At least until an uninvited guest threatens to ruin the night for everyone.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Marc Anciel/Nathaniel Kurtzberg</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>40</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>MarcNath Fics!, Secret Santa 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Magnetrix</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bioactress/gifts">Bioactress</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This fic is part of a Secret Santa gift exchange in the NathMarc Multiverse Discord server. Season's greetings, Bioactress!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"The magic all began, 'Cause you're a Big Bang!" Tikki sang as she swung her arms around in a loop as she twirled in front of Marinette's monitor, copying the dance she saw on the screen.</p><p>"Don't you stop dancing to the music!"</p><p>She performed a somersault in the air and posed for a moment before hearing the background percussion of the sewing machine stop. She paused the music video and turned as Marinette held up the finished garment.</p><p>"Done! What do you think, Tikki?" She neatened some of the hems of her dark grey A-line dress, adjusting the white rounded collar and picking off some loose threads. Marinette stood up and draped the dress over one of the mannequins in the room, looking through one of her storage boxes to find matching accessories for the dress.</p><p>"It looks great, Marinette! Now you can add prom dresses to your list of creations."</p><p>"I'm just glad I managed to finish this. We only learned about the prom last month, and I had a bunch of other commissions to complete."</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em> "And that's why our school is having a prom next month," Chloe finished her spiel, and Sabrina moved to the final slide of her presentation showing a garishly overblown banner flashing 'Vote Chloe for Prom Queen'. Most of the class was just staring at the screen unamused. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> At least it was more coherent than her assignment on Queen Bee. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "So...you got your father to convince Principal Damocles to have an official school prom," Alix remarked, resting her head on her hand. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Maybe. But he saw it was a good idea. After all, with all the stress of studying and supervillains, having a formal gathering where everyone can have a good time, and I can win a crown, would be good for us." Chloe held her head up smugly while most of the class turned to look uncertainly at their desk-mate. Sabrina tapped some folded papers on her desk before starting to hand them out to people. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "And I'm going to make sure it's the best prom you'll ever go to. I've already booked the restaurant, so it'll be fully catered. I’ve chosen only the most stylish of themes to decorate, and I've called in some favours to get the best live music. I even designed the invitations myself!" </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Sabrina handed an invitation to Marinette. Yup, it was definitely designed by Chloe. Everything down to the font choice (and the not so subtle reminder to vote for her). </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "So make sure you remember who worked hard on this when it comes time to vote for Prom Queen, alright?" </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>"I know I was apprehensive about this whole prom idea, but now I'm looking forward to it. Who knew Chloe would step up and take responsibility for everything," she pondered, adding a matching white belt to cinch the waist of the dress.</p><p>"Maybe you were right, Marinette. Maybe being Queen Bee is making her a better Chloe."</p><p>"It certainly seems like it. Remember the suit fitting day?"</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em> There was less than a week to go before the prom, and Marinette overheard Kim complaining to Max before class that the suit he bought didn't fit him that well. So during class she offered to adjust anyone's prom suits or dresses in the art room the next day. After checking with Marc that he wouldn't feel put out by the crowd, most of the class turned up, and Room 33 was buzzing with genuine excitement for the event. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Kim was standing on a stool while Marinette clambered over a stepladder using pins and tailor's chalk to mark the right points to hem and taper his suit. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "This red trim is a nice touch. I have some silk flowers that would look good as a matching corsage if you want to borrow them," Marinette offered as she adjusted one of the shoulders of the jacket. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "That's okay. I'm flying solo for the prom." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Oh? You're not taking Ondine?" </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Nah, she's pretty busy with all her training. Ondine's representing her school at the national swimming championships. She's so awesome!" Kim grinned as he thought about her. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "I asked her to go, but she said she needs to focus. And she asked me to go and enjoy myself because I've been there to support her for so many training sessions." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "That's so nice! Okay, I think that's it for measuring. Be careful taking these off because there are still pins in there. The adjustments shouldn't take too long- Kim please get changed behind the screen." She abruptly added the last part of her sentence and turned away as she heard him start to undress in front of the class. Kim just shrugged and shuffled around the makeshift privacy screen, handing the jacket around to her. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> As Marinette lined up the first seam in her sewing machine (which she had brought in especially for today), the door opened abruptly, and Chloe strode into the room. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Lavillant," she called, walking up to the blonde girl, currently modelling a pink flowery mini dress with light purple leggings and flats. As she stopped in front of her, she glanced to the side and saw Nino. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Oh good, you're here too, Lahiffe," she turned to partially address him too. She gave a side eye to everyone in the room just staring at her, prompting people to go back to talking quietly amongst themselves. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Ew... It's so stuffy in here... I'll make this quick. I need you to play music at my- our prom." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Nino and Rose glanced at each other before turning back to Chloe. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "I'd be happy to get Kitty Section together to perform, but didn't you already get live music?" Rose asked. Chloe sighed and rested the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "I did book one of the best musicians in Paris. But they decided they had something better to do on short notice." Her face darkened and she turned to mutter into her shoulder. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "We'll see if they're ever welcome in our hotel again..." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Chloe realised that they were still listening and turned back to continue. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Look... I wouldn't be asking you if you weren't... good. If that greasy manager tried to steal your work then it must be alright. And you got my father to dance on live TV. I've asked Adrien to play some piano, that way you can take turns playing and enjoy the prom." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> She paused and took in a deep breath, looking like she was struggling to come to terms with what she was about to say. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Please." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Every conversation in the room immediately ground to a halt. Even the art teacher was surprised to hear Chloe say that. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Then Kim stumbled as he tried to pick it up and landed on his back in his swimming trunks. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Marinette casually slid the privacy screen to cover him up, watching Chloe giving her an appreciative nod before looking back to the astonished Nino and Rose. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Uh, I have a few setlists I save for special occasions." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "And we can perform a few songs for you." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Great. I'll tell them to let you in early for sound checking or whatever." She turned to leave, marching quickly to the door and reaching for the handle. She would have just yanked it shut, but she paused as she saw Marc wincing in anticipation next to Nathaniel. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "Kurtzberg. Anciel." With her curt acknowledgement, she closed the door more gently. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> There was stunned silence in the art room for a while as everyone contemplated what they just saw. Rose was the first to start speaking again, holding a quick meeting with Juleka and Ivan, while Nino wordlessly sat down and checked the playlists on his phone. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "That... that was Chloe, right?" Kim stepped out from behind the screen fully dressed, adjusting his hoodie. Marinette was just staring at the door, unsure how to answer. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "I should have filmed that. Chloe being polite? We might as well have just seen Bigfoot." Alya joked, sitting down next to Marinette as she started sewing again.<br/>
</em>
  <em>"I guess she really wants to win that crown." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Maybe that was it. She was playing nice to get people to vote for her. Marinette looked down at the jacket she was sewing, stopping at the end of the seam and lifting the foot of her machine. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "There's nothing wrong with that, right?" she looked up at Alya as she moved the jacket to adjust the next seam.<br/>
</em>
  <em> "Yeah, she might have other reasons for being nice, but at least she's trying. We should give her a chance, and maybe this Chloe will stick around." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "If you say so. I already know who I'm voting for," she gave Marinette a wink, and they chuckled a little as she continued sewing. </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>"It's great that Adrien's being allowed to attend," Tikki hummed, helping Marinette to sort through the various accessories, finding a cute miniature derby hat to go with her dress.<br/>
"Do you have any plans with him tomorrow?"</p><p>"No, I'm going to be busy with something else." Marinette looked over at the corkboard on her desk. Pinned in the corner was a small photo, featuring Marc and Nathaniel in a loving embrace while Alix dumped a basket of flower petals over them. Marinette was delighted to be the second person to hear that the two boys were officially dating, especially after helping Nathaniel with his confession.</p><p>"Tomorrow night is all about Marc."</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em> "What do you think?" Nathaniel scratched the back of his head, watching Marc reading his chibi comic. The first two panels featured Mightillustrator giving Reverser flowers and asking him to go to the prom with him. The last panel was Reverser's face, waiting for his reply. His blushing expression was exactly the same as Marc's in real life, right down to the little nervous smile tugging at the corners of his lips. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> "It's okay if you don't want to. I know how you feel about parties and groups of people. If you'd rather not, we can just stay home and watch a movie or play some video games." </em>
</p><p><em> "Nathaniel..." Marc tucked the comic as carefully as he could into his writing journal, wanting to preserve it as best as he could. </em> <em><br/>
</em> <em> "I... I’d love to go with you! And it’s just going to students in our year, so it won’t be too bad. Besides, we’ve been dating for a few weeks." </em></p><p>
  <em> "And I've loved every second of it." </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Marc chuckled and leaned against Nathaniel, starting to talk softly about what they would wear on the night. Marinette, who was definitely not eavesdropping, looked up from the corsage she was making for Mylene. She reached for her phone and scrolled through her contacts until she found Lahiffe, Nino. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> [Hey Nino, you know how you’re DJing at the prom?] </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>"I've talked to Nino about making sure the music isn't too loud for him, and since Kim is free I've enlisted him as a class ambassador, so Marc will feel more welcome with us." Marinette placed some low black platform heels by the mannequin to finish the look of her prom dress. Simple, sophisticated, and most importantly easy to move in. Just in case she had to check out of the event and transform.</p><p>"For once, I have the feeling that everything's going to go well."</p>
<hr/><p>The big day finally arrived: Francoise Dupont’s first official prom. Marinette did a final check in her mirror to make sure her dress was ready; no loose threads or pins left in by accident. Tikki carried the mini derby hat to Marinette, setting it on her head.</p><p>“Looking good, Marinette!” she cheered, hiding underneath it with a laugh. Marinette adjusted the hat a little before going downstairs and wishing her parents a good night as she left.</p><p>It was only a couple of blocks to the Le Grand Paris Hotel, and Marinette was happy to walk the short distance. As she arrived, a familiar white limousine pulled up by the entrance. Marinette did a quick spot check to see if her appearance was still the same as it was a few minutes ago. She might not be actively trying to pursue her feelings tonight, but she still wanted to be presentable to…</p><p>The door of the limousine opened and a black gladiator strap heel stepped out, followed by a flowing orange wrap dress that blended with gold and crimson highlights.</p><p>“Sorry, but I’m not Adrien.” Alya shrugged, tossing her hair over her shoulder in the most model-like fashion she could.<br/>
"He’s already up there setting up the music, and Nino convinced his bodyguard to pick me up in the limo.”</p><p>“I’m sure you could walk a catwalk in that dress. You look fantastic!” Marinette took Alya’s arm and they both smiled as they entered the hotel. The maitre d’ directed them to the restaurant, and Alya snapped a selfie of them in the elevator on the way up (she specifically picked out a prom dress that would allow her to carry her phone).</p><p>“It’s weird to admit it, but I’m actually looking forward to this,” Alya admitted while posting the selfie to her instagram.<br/>
“It’s a shame Lila had to miss our prom. But at least she’s having fun at the diplomat’s ball in Achu.”</p><p>Marinette was all too delighted to remind Lila of her own previously spun tale, effectively trapping her in the consequences of her actions for once. It was a small victory, but one to be celebrated nonetheless. So she allowed herself to have a smug little smirk on her face until the elevators opened on the sixth floor.</p><p>“Yo Marinette! Alya!” Alix waved, sporting a rather dapper looking suit. Her pink hair was styled back in short waves, and she had a stylish green and pink ribbon tie that matched her usual sneakers.</p><p>“Alix! Love the waistcoat,” Alya complimented, holding out her phone for another group selfie.</p><p>“Thanks. My brother wanted to pick out a nice dress for me but blech.” The girls laughed as they were checked off at the door and entered the restaurant for the prom.</p><p>It honestly looked like the venue could be hosting a high-end awards ceremony. Arrangements of black and yellow flowers were standing in extravagant yet elegant gold stands. The ceiling was draped with sheer black silk, with golden lights twinkling through them like stars. An area to the side was set up for photos with a distinct black backdrop that looked like tiny sparks were raining down behind them. The tables had all been set with black silk tablecloths, and the buffet station was a sea of delicious treats.</p><p>There were also two stages set up by the dance floor; one stage was set up with Kitty Section’s gear, where Rose and Juleka were doing a quick runthrough of their songs for the evening, as well as testing how well the Kitty Section costumes looked over their dresses. Rose looked expectedly adorable, but Juleka? Her dress was a stunning black pencil dress, matched with opera length black lace gloves and sleek heeled boots. Somehow the purple kitten mask and shoulderpads only made her look more striking. Ivan and Mylene were also hanging around the stage. Mylene was dressed up in a red and grey bardot dress, with her sunflower corsage pinned on the front. Ivan was wearing a matching grey suit, with a sunflower themed tie pin holding his red tie in place.</p><p>The other stage seemed to be the main stage judging from the giant display screen showing golden stars slowly falling and bursting into sparkles as an ambient background. Nino’s turntables and sound mixing equipment was set up on one side, and a black grand piano was placed on the other for Adrien to play. Nino was giving Adrien a little lesson on his turntables when he saw the girls arrive, and he quickly hopped down to greet Alya. His dark red suit and burnt orange shirt were a perfect match for Alya’s dress, especially with the matching tiger lily corsage and boutonniere set he brought.</p><p>Marinette took a second to glance at Adrien, who was still playing around on Nino’s equipment. She saw he was wearing the feathered derby hat she created for him, which went well with his dark plaid patterned suit and tie. If it were any other night then she would have started to think about talking to him and asking him for a prom photo… which would have come out as gibberish like a mop throto like any other time she talked to him. No, tonight wasn’t about him. And maybe if she just kept some distance she could keep her head on properly.</p><p>Butler Jean approached the microphone on the stage and tapped it a couple of times before addressing the room.</p><p>“Ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for your hostess for this eveni-” he paused as he looked off stage and quickly made an apologetic gesture.<br/>
“Please put your hands together for your hostess, and Prom Queen candidate, for this evening, Miss Chloe Bourgeois.”</p><p>Chloe swanned onto the stage in a gold and black strapless dress. Her entire form dazzled from her diamond earrings to her glittery gold heels.</p><p>“Thank you, Jean-Aubert. And yes, as your hostess I would like to officially welcome you to the most fabulous prom Paris has ever seen. Don’t forget to vote for the prom royalty!” She gestured to Sabrina, who waved as she stood next to a little table covered with papers and a box. She was wearing a turquoise pinafore dress over a white sweater, and her shoes had little turquoise bows on them.</p><p>As Chloe continued to wax poetic about the fabulousness of the event, Marinette saw Nathaniel and Marc arrive. Nathaniel was dressed in a sharp white waistcoat over a black dress shirt and pants. Most notable was the fancy two-tone bowtie that was white on one side and black on the other. Marc’s clothes were almost completely inverted from Nathaniel’s; he had black vest over a white shirt and pants, although his pants also featured some purple stripes down the sides. His tie had a little square pin in the middle featuring three coloured circles; yellow, cyan and magenta. Both of them had little sprigs of white flowers pinned to their vests. </p><p>“...And with that, it’s time to get this party started!”</p>
<hr/><p>Nino flipped one of his records and quickly the restaurant filled with a groovy beat as people started making their way to the dance floor. Max in his dark purple suit took the centre of the dance floor, and hovering next to him was Markov performing the same dance moves. Markov was even decorated with a little matching bowtie sticker. </p><p>Everyone started milling about the event. Rose and Juleka posed for a photo at the stand, with the photographer calling them as magnificent as fresh tagliatelle. Mylene and Ivan were feeding each other little canapes from the buffet, while Adrien looked like he was stashing different kinds of cheese in his jacket. But even with the festive environment, Marc found himself gravitating to one of the corners, taking a seat on one of the sofas.</p><p>“Are you okay? Is the music too loud?”</p><p>“N-no, it’s… it’s actually really nice. I just... “ Marc looked around at everyone else. There were groups talking everywhere, laughing and smiling… and he shouldn’t interrupt them.</p><p>“It’s nothing. Could you get me some food? It’s a bit crowded at the buffet.”</p><p>“Just let me know if it gets too much.” Nathaniel leaned in to kiss Marc’s cheek before going to get him a plate.</p><p>Marinette was getting herself a glass of punch when she saw Marc huddled in the corner by himself. Time to call in the ambassador. She set her cup down and approached Kim on the dance floor, tapping his shoulder and whispering something to him. He nodded and gave her a thumbs up with a wink before walking over to the corner.</p><p>“Hey Marc! Having fun?” Kim announced, taking a seat on the couch, but leaving a space for Nathaniel. Marc just gave a quick nod in reply.<br/>
“By the way, I loved your latest issue of the Ladybug comic.”</p><p>“Y-you did?” Marc perked up a little.</p><p>“Obviously! The stories are all like Bam! Boom! Pow!” Kim emphasised the words with little punches in the air, making both of them chuckle a little.<br/>
“I couldn’t put it down. Where did you get the idea for the pogostick that Ladybug used?”</p><p>“Oh! That was based on something that happened on a date. We were … um…” He tapered off, looking at the floor wondering if maybe he shouldn’t tell the story. It was probably boring and...</p><p>“Nathaniel! Perfect timing.” Marc looked up as Kim called out to him, patting the empty space he left. Nathaniel was carrying a couple of plates full of little treats. <br/>
“Marc was about to tell me the pogostick story!”</p><p>“The pogosti- Oh! That guy in the park!” Nathaniel quickly sat down as Marc looked back up and continued telling the tale.</p><p>Marinette watched across the room as Kim burst into laughter as Marc spoke, and hummed triumphantly to herself that her plan was working. She returned to the punchbowl for the cup she left, but was unable to find it.</p><p>“Looking for this?” She turned and almost collided with Luka, managing to stop herself tripping over before the contents of the cup spilled onto his teal-trimmed tux. After a nervous giggle, she reached up to take it.</p><p>“Thanks Luka.”</p><p>“I see you’re looking out for your friends as always,” Luka looked across at Marc, who was now laughing with Nathaniel at a story Kim was telling.<br/>
“Even at a fancy party you’re helping someone out. You’re like the harmony that keeps people together.” </p><p>Marinette took a sip of her punch to stifle the giddy grin and blush, although Luka just smiled as he adjusted the collar of his shirt, which stayed a little messy since he left the top two buttons undone for comfort.</p><p>“The band’s almost ready. I should probably help out. Oh, and I’ll be playing our first song just for you, Marinette.” He winked and moved to the second stage where Juleka and Ivan were checking that all the microphones were plugged in. Marinette felt herself floating as she walked over to the corner to sit down.</p><p>“Hi Marinette,” Nathaniel greeted as she basically stumbled into one of the seats.<br/>
“Normal day for you, huh?”</p><p>Everyone laughed as Marinette righted her self in the chair, still repeating Luka’s words in her head.</p><p>“I’m going to get some of those little egg tarts. You should hang out with us some time, Marc. You’re really awesome.” Kim gave a wave as he headed to the buffet, and Marc leaned back against the sofa with a little sigh. It looked like he was having a good time.</p><p>Marc did jump a little as the room was suddenly rocked by a guitar solo. Marinette looked over to the Kitty Section stage where the group were fully decked out with the costume pieces over their suits. Ivan laid down a beat as people started cheering, and Juleka soon followed with a killer bass line. As soon as Rose started singing the first lines of Dancing on Sunshine, everyone on the dance floor went wild.</p><p>To everyone’s surprise, Marc started cheering too, joining in with a little dance from his seat. Nathaniel smiled and started dancing along with him, rocking back and forth to the beats of the song. The room was pumping as Kitty Section flew through their set list, and by the end there wasn’t a single person not singing along to I Love Unicorns.</p><p>While everyone was singing and dancing, Sabrina was zooming about the event making sure everything was staying perfect for Chloe. Whenever someone dropped a napkin or food scrap, she was quick to clean it up. She had a routine on checking all the flower stands to make sure they were still perfect. It was during one of these trips that she almost bumped into Chloe.</p><p>“Sabrina? You look like you just ran a marathon.”</p><p>“I’m making sure everything here is still the best. There was a small punch spill but I cleaned that up. And the buffet is being refilled on schedule, so maybe I can get some of those walnut cookies if I have time between my flower checking. I also gave the ballot box to your butler to count so we’ll get the results soon, and I’m sure you’ll win! Is there anything else you need from me, Chloe?”</p><p>Chloe just stared at her as if she revealed she was the Ghost of Christmas Past. She shook her head and placed her hand on Sabrina’s shoulder, walking her over to one of the tables and sitting them down. </p><p>“What I need right now is for you to sit down and relax. I can’t enjoy myself if you’re off making a big deal out of everything.” She folded her arms as Sabrina’s face dropped.<br/>
“You’re meant to be having fun too,” she mumbled, although Sabrina didn’t hear since everyone started cheering at the end of the last song.</p><p>As the standing ovation gradually died down, Adrien moved onto the main stage for his musical shift, and he started playing a soft ballad on the piano. People started filing onto the dance floor in pairs for a slow dance. Nathaniel turned to Marc and held a hand out to him.</p><p>“Will you dance with me?”</p><p>“Uh… I…” Marc hesitated, looking over at all the couples. If they joined, they would be the only pair of boys dancing together.</p><p>“It’s okay if you don’t want to. I won’t force it.” Nathaniel lowered his hand onto Marc’s knee, sitting back to watch the others. Marc placed his hand over Nathaniels, squeezing it appreciatively, yet sadly.</p><p>Marinette could tell Marc really wanted to dance with Nathaniel. She just had to find a way to make him feel more comfortable. And she couldn’t do it in a way that drew attention to Marc, because he would hate being in the spotlight…</p><p>[Nino and Alya]</p><p>[Kim]</p><p>Perfect. Excusing herself, she walked onto the dance floor and approached her best friend.</p><p>“Pardon me, but may I cut in?”</p><p>Alya and Nino both looked at her bemused.</p><p>“You… want to dance with Nino?”</p><p>“No, I’d like to dance with you, Alya. If that’s alright?” Marinette looked to Nino and gave a subtle head tilt towards the couple in the corner. It took him a couple of seconds, but then he clued in.</p><p>“Right! Sure thing, dude. We’ll dance another time, Alya.” He leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek before going to find someone else, leaving Marinette to take Alya’s hand and continue the dance.</p><p>“Alright, girl, spill. You’re planning something.”</p><p>“Just watch.”</p><p>It didn’t take too long to find Kim at the buffet table with Alix. When Nino got his attention, he turned to reveal his cheeks were stuffed full of marshmallows.</p><p>“Marinette’s dancing with Alya, so would you like to dance with me, dude?”</p><p>Alix poked her head around from behind Kim’s torso with a raised eyebrow, showing she also had a mouthful of marshmallows. Kim tilted his head for a second, then shrugged and nodded, and took a second to try and swallow all the marshmallows.</p><p>“Sorry, Alix. We’ll have this contest another time.” Kim grinned at her annoyed expression as he put his arm around Nino’s shoulders and walked him to the dance floor. Huffing a little, she saw Max approaching and tried to get a couple of words out.</p><p>“Makhs, fwuffy bunniehs?” she spoke through the marshmallows. Max had a look at the bowl full of fluffy gelatin confections and pushed his glasses up on his nose.</p><p>“You’re on.”</p><p>Alix pumped her fist as Max started filling his face with the marshmallows. Markov hovered over the table and made a few beeps, displaying a concerned expression on his screen.</p><p>“I will prepare to call emergency services.”</p><p>As Rose saw Kim dancing around with Nino, she excitedly brought Juleka to the dance floor and wrapped her arms around her, swaying back and forth to the ballad. Juleka felt a little out of place, but quickly relaxed as she rested her arms on Rose’s shoulders, admiring the violets of their matching corsages. </p><p>Luka took out his acoustic guitar from its case behind the Kitty Section stage (of course he brought it with him). He walked over to Adrien at the piano and leaned against it, quickly playing a harmonising tune on the strings. Adrien looked up and smiled; at least he could have a little musical dance here with Luka.</p><p>Now everyone was paired up with a same-gendered partner. Marinette looked over to the corner, and to her delight she saw Nathaniel standing up and offering his hand to Marc, who tentatively accepted and walked with him to the dance floor. Nino and Kim (who needed Nino to explain what was happening) silently cheered as they stood together and just started to step together to the song.</p><p>“What the hell is this?” shrieked a shrill voice from the door.</p><p>Everyone froze and Adrien stopped playing as some woman pushed her way into the event. She had a blonde highlighted bob-cut and was wearing a dark blue dress and heels, as well as a very elaborate pearl necklace.</p><p>“Is this what you kids are doing these days? Disgusting. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.”</p><p>Marc felt himself clinging tighter to Nathaniel’s shoulders. He wanted to tell this woman off, tell her to leave them alone. But his voice seemed to catch in his throat, and he couldn’t form any of the thousands of words he had flying about in his mind. Nathaniel quickly turned them so he was protecting Marc from her scrutinising glare.</p><p>“Where’s the manager of this restaurant? This is unacceptable!”</p><p>“Are you kidding me?” Chloe stomped up to the woman, holding her hands on her hips.<br/>
“What is your problem, lady?”</p><p>“My problem is that I booked a table for tonight at this restaurant two weeks ago. I demand to be served.”</p><p>“No, you didn’t. Because I booked this restaurant last month for our prom.”</p><p>“You insolent little brat! I’m a very good friend of the owner of this hotel!”</p><p>“Really? I’ve never seen you before in my life. How do you know my father?”</p><p>The woman gaped a little and pointed threateningly at Chloe, but she stood her ground and continued to glare back at her. Unable to come up with an excuse, she stormed out of the restaurant, slamming the doors so hard they hit the walls.</p><p>“Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous.” Chloe huffed and walked over to the bar to get herself a soda, quickly followed by Sabrina.</p><p>Nathaniel quickly brought Marc back to the safety of the corner of the room, letting him take some breaths until his arms stopped shaking so much. Marinette looked around the crowd, seeing everyone was still quite shocked from that display. Her optimistic thought that everything would go right was gone now, because she knew that lady would be back. And not to apologise…</p><p>Marinette quickly and quietly made her way to the fire escape, while Adrien pretended to spill some punch on his shirt and rushed to the bathroom to clean himself. As Marinette hid on the stairs she lifted her hat to let Tikki fly out.</p><p>“That woman was really angry. There’s no way Hawkmoth won’t take advantage of that. So much for making sure Marc is okay. Now I have to make sure everyone’s okay.” She cringed as she heard a loud bang and a scream from the restaurant, then turned back to Tikki with a serious expression.</p><p>“Tikki! Spots on!”</p><p>---</p><p>The woman laughing maniacally as she moved onto the main stage, only now her hair was styled in the shape of a horseshoe magnet, dyed red and blue. Her dress was similarly divided into red and blue, and her fingernails also glowed in each colour.</p><p>“Now will I get the respect I’m entitled to? I am Magnetrix, and I demand-”</p><p>“No! Absolutely not!” Chloe huffed and threw her soda towards the woman. Magnetrix ducked as the can splashed soda all over the wall, then turned back as Chloe continued to storm up to her.</p><p>“The only thing you’re entitled to is to get out! I will not have my prom ruined by the likes of-”</p><p>Before Chloe could finish her statement, Magnetrix extended one of her hands towards Chloe, firing a blast of blue energy at her. Chloe gasped as she was suddenly thrown backwards, landing against the far wall of the restaurant. She struggled to stand, looking down and seeing one of her heels was broken. And she was still radiating some form of blue light.</p><p>“Chloe!” Sabrina called out and ran over to tend to her, but Magnetrix fired the blue energy blast at her as well. Sabrina started glowing blue as well, and as soon as they got close Sabrina was thrown backwards.</p><p>“Wha- Chloe! I can’t get close!”</p><p>“As it should be! No more of your silly childish antics!”</p><p>“You’re the one being childish!” Alya yelled as she jumped at Magnetrix to try and restrain her. She managed to restrain one of her arms, but was also affected by the blue light and thrown back onto the ground.</p><p>“Alya!” Nino took a fighting stance in front of the woman, dropping his DJ headphones on the ground beside him.</p><p>“What? You think someone like YOU can take me on?”</p><p>“Sure he can. We all will!” Kim and Ivan stepped up beside Nino to fight this villain. She just laughed and extended her other hand towards them. The three boys were surrounded in a red light, and immediately were sent flying in different directions away from each other. Kim landed near Sabrina, where the different coloured auras caused them to stick to each other, no matter how hard they tried to pull apart.</p><p>“There! That’s how things should be!”</p><p>“You’re wrong,” Magnetrix turned to see Ladybug spinning her yo-yo by her side.<br/>
“It’s time for you to grow up!”</p><p>She threw her yo-yo at the villain, forcing her to dodge from the stage onto the dance floor. Magnetrix started blasting at Ladybug with her nails, and she managed to dodge several blasts before trying to deflect one with her yo-yo. That was a mistake, as the Miraculous weapon itself began glowing in blue, and she found herself unable to catch it again. It just repelled away from her.</p><p>“Try defeating me now, Ladybrat!” Magnetrix extended her nails towards one of the flower stands, enveloping the flowers in a red aura and throwing them all towards Ladybug. Without being able to block, Ladybug could only dodge backwards as the stand smashed against the ground and all the debris and flowers stuck to her yo-yo. Magnetrix quickly took advantage of disarming her by blasting her with her blue nails.</p><p> </p><p>Ladybug managed to jump behind an overturned table for cover, but realised too late that she landed near Nino, and the two of them became magnetised together. Worse, Nino looked like he was nursing an injured ankle.</p><p>“Sorry Ladybug… I think I landed bad…”</p><p>“Don’t worry. I’ll fix this,” she reassured him, trying to move them so Nino was resting comfortably on the ground.</p><p>“See what happens when I don’t get respect?” Magnetrix strode over the mess on the floor towards the table, crushing under her heel bits of flowers and fragments of vases and a solid steel rod that extended to trip her up.</p><p>“You’ll get respect when you earn it.” Chat Noir used his staff to lift himself towards the roof and strike at the staggering villain. She rolled to the side and started firing blasts at him as well. Her magnetic shots were being easily evaded by the nimble cat, until she saw Luka helping Juleka and Rose escape into the kitchen and a malicious grin spread across her face. Luka covered the doors as Magnetrix fired the blasts at him. Chat Noir quickly jumped in front to deflect the hit, suddenly realising that he let his staff get magnetised, and it repelled itself away from him into a display of cupcakes on the buffet table.</p><p>“Ha! You heroes are so predictable!” Magnetrix taunted. Chat Noir nudged Luka into the safety of the kitchen as well and continued to dodge the magnet blasts.</p><p>“Chat Noir!” Ladybug tugged on her yo-yo string, managing to pull her weapon closer for a moment.<br/>
“Lucky Charm!”</p><p>Her yo-yo spin wildly around as it summoned the lucky charm, resulting in the ladybug patterned tiara being flung to the side, landing on Chloe’s head. The effect of the magic also caused some of the flowers to be thrown off, somehow landing in a bouquet next to her.</p>
<hr/><p>As the chaos of battle raged on, Nathaniel continued to hold Marc close from where they were hiding behind the bar. He could feel Marc’s whole body trembling, and he couldn’t bear the idea of being forced to stay away from him when he was in distress like this. </p><p>“W-We have to do something!” Marc quietly blurted out, suddenly lifting his head up from Nathaniel’s shoulder.</p><p>“Marc?”</p><p>“Someone might get hurt. I… We have to stop her!” Marc clenched his fists to stop himself nervously fiddling. Nathaniel could tell he was trying to push his anxiety aside for everyone else. </p><p>“Are you sure you can manage?”</p><p>“We’re heroes, aren’t we? Why am I hiding? Why am I scared? We’re stronger than her, I know it!”</p><p>Nathaniel eased Marc’s fists open to hold both of his hands, nodding. They could do this.</p><p>“Okay, we need a plan. That… woman… she was wearing a fancy pearl necklace.” Nathaniel poked his head above the bar, seeing Magnetrix also had a very fancy necklace, although the pearls were now jet black.</p><p>“The akuma has to be there. We just need a distraction to get it away from her...”</p><p>[A tray of crab cakes on the buffet]</p><p>[An ice bucket]</p><p>[The microphones on the Kitty Section stage]</p><p>“I’ve got it. How do you feel about starting a food fight in a fancy restaurant?”</p><p>“Excellent.” Marc nodded, looking more determined.</p><p>Magnetrix extended her nails towards the drum kit on stage, sending all the pieces flying at Chat Noir. He ducked under the tom-tom drums, then leaped over the rolling bass.</p><p>“I didn’t ask for a drum roll!” he quipped, quickly picking up a microphone stand to deflect a snare drum with a couple of hits, followed by a cymbal. With a grin, he leaped at Magnetrix with the makeshift weapon. </p><p>“And I didn’t ask for an unfunny comedian!” Magnetrix used her hand to drag Alya in front of her as a human shield. Chat Noir quickly averted his swing, but this allowed the villain to magnetise Chat Noir as well, leaving him stuck to Alya. Ladybug gasped, looking down at Nino still nursing his ankle. Now both of them were stuck, and Magnetrix was reaching to take Chat Noir’s Miraculous.</p><p>“Hey lady!” Magnetrix turned to see a crab cake flying at her, splattering across her face. She recoiled in disgust and wiped her face on her sleeve, just in time to have another crab cake hit her in the eye.</p><p>“How dare you! You rotten little-” She pointed her nails at Marc to try and magnetise him but suddenly her vision went dark and everything was cold.</p><p>“You need to cool off!” Nathaniel taunted, having just dumped the ice bucket onto her head. Magnetrix wheeled around and fired the magnetising blasts from her nails blindly, trying to catch the person who did this to her in a screaming frenzy. Nathaniel loudly ran across a stage, luring Magnetrix into pointing both her hands in that direction. </p><p>Before the blasts could be fired, a thrown microphone wrapped around her wrists and she was yanked to the side. Marc kept the villain restrained with the microphone cables as Nathaniel ran over and quickly removed her necklace.</p><p>“Chat Noir! Catch!”</p><p>Marc threw the pearls to Chat Noir, and Alya turned them so he could reach it with his free hand.</p><p>“Cataclysm!”</p><p>The black pearls all crumbled into dust, releasing the purple butterfly from within. </p><p>Chloe quickly threw the tiara over to Ladybug, and she used it to summon the Miraculous Ladybugs, reverting the chaotic scene to the lively party from before. The magnetised people managed to pull apart; most of them immediately hugged the person they were stuck to from relief, although Alya and Nino, who’s ankle had been magically healed, quickly ran to each other.</p><p>“Party’s over, little akuma!” Ladybug quipped, catching the creature in her yo-yo and releasing the purified butterfly a moment later. As she prepared to make her leave, Chat Noir walked towards her holding a couple of yellow flowers.</p><p>“Chat…”</p><p>“As much as I love giving you flowers, m’lady, these aren’t for you.” Chat Noir handed one of them to Ladybug, then turned to the side, where Marc and Nathaniel were holding each other in celebration.<br/>
“They’re for the real heroes of the night.” Marc chuckled as he and Nathaniel accepted the flowers from the heroes, then reached forward in a fist bump.</p><p>“Pound it!”</p>
<hr/><p>The lady’s attitude did not improve after being deakumatised, but thankfully Butler Jean returned with the hotel security. Chloe quickly instructed them to remove the lady from the premises.</p><p>“Security will show you out. And you can consider yourself banned from the hotel. Permanently.”</p><p>“You can’t ban me! I’m a friend of the mayor! I’ll call him and get him to close this place down!”</p><p>“Really? You’re going to get my father to shut down his own hotel?”</p><p>The lady’s face showed many different flavours of humiliation as Chloe revealed that not only was she the daughter of the owner of the hotel, but also the daughter of the mayor. The security officers took advantage of her shock to drag her out while she wasn’t fighting back.</p><p>“Ridiculous… utterly, UTTERLY ridiculous,” Chloe sighed and turned, walking onto the main stage. As she passed Butler Jean, he handed her an envelope with a small smile, then cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention.</p><p>“Mademoiselle has an announcement to make.”</p><p>“Thank you, Jean-Remy. It’s time to announce what we’ve all been waiting for. The winners of the Prom Royalty.” She held the envelope aloft for a moment, then struggled to open it without ruining her nails. Groaning, she handed it back to her butler, who quickly pulled it open and handed her the results. Chloe read the names on the paper, then scoffed.</p><p>“Well, obviously I’m vetoing this,” she grumbled, tearing up the results. Alya and Alix folded their arms, while most of the other girls started looking crestfallen.</p><p>“The Royalty of this Prom are…” she paused looking at the two plastic crowns on the table.</p><p>“Ladybug and Chat Noir.”</p><p>Most of the crowd were shocked to hear this, thinking she would have changed the result so she won.</p><p>“They might not be here to accept them, but I think they deserve it for saving this prom and dealing with that… person. And I’m sure they would have been delighted to accept the titles from me.”</p><p>Chloe walked off stage and headed to the doors, turning to address her butler.</p><p>“I’ve had enough of this for tonight. Bring a tray of the crab cakes to my room.”</p><p>“Of course, Miss Chloe.”</p><p>“...Wait.”</p><p>Butler Jean had just picked up the tray, and he looked up at Chloe, standing at the doors pondering something.</p><p>“Take the walnut cookies too. Come on, Sabrina.” With that, Chloe left the party. Butler Jean picked up the platter of cookies as well, although Sabrina was quick to offer to carry them for him.</p><p>The disbelieving silence that hung in the air only emphasised the click of the doors as Sabrina and Butler Jean also left the prom. As the room started to fill with quiet murmurs and gossip. Adrien quietly sat down at the piano to start playing again, and slowly everyone returned to enjoying their night. Marinette discretely moved to the pile of paper shreds on the table, curiously picking through them to see if she could find out who was meant to win.</p><p>rom Que<br/>
1st: Chl</p><p>As she realised that Chloe had essentially given up her crown for her, she suddenly remembered her mission that night. Marinette worriedly looked around for any sign of Marc, only to feel reassured seeing someone walking up to the rooftop pool.</p>
<hr/><p>Marc wasn't there to hear the results. As soon as Ladybug and Chat Noir left, he took the chance to make himself scarce and escaped to the quiet of the pool area. It did feel great to stop that villain, but being a hero was always so mentally exhausting, with or without a Miraculous.</p><p>It was peaceful up on the roof, with only the light rustle of the leaves overspreading the silence. He took some slow, calming breaths as he walked past the closed pool, gazing the reflection of the stars in the glassy cover. The cool night air was a tremendous help in calming him down as he sat down on one of the pool chairs, rested his arms on his knees, and let out a deep exhale as he let his head slump down.</p><p>“I thought you’d be out here.”</p><p>He turned to see Nathaniel, and relaxed a bit as he sat down next to him and rested a hand on his shoulder.</p><p>“Are you okay?”</p><p>Marc nodded slowly. He opened his mouth to try and say something, stuttering over a couple of words before Nathaniel shook his head and pulled him into a gentle hug.</p><p>"It's alright. I know."</p><p>Marc rested his head against his boyfriend's shoulder, sighing with relief and just feeling grateful for Nathaniel. When he thought about it, it wasn't such a bad night. He went to a prom with a date, he got to hang out with new friends, he helped to save the day, he almost danced with Nathaniel...</p><p>"Say, now that it's just the two of us..." Nathaniel took out his phone and scrolled through it, then set it down on the chair where it started playing a soft romantic song. He stood up and turned to offer his hand to Marc.</p><p>“Will you dance with me?”</p><p>Was Nathaniel a mind reader? Marc softly giggled and took his hand, lacing their fingers together as he pulled himself up. He rested his other hand on Nathaniel's shoulder, while he brought his free arm around Marc's waist. The two of them leaned in close, resting their faces against each other, getting lost in the brightness of each other's eyes and the warmth of each other's smile. </p><p>The night was young, the stars were bright, and the two boys shuffled slowly together; a dance just for themselves. And in the peace of his arms, Marc found his voice again to say the three words he meant the most.</p><p>"I love you."</p><p>"I love you too."</p>
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